Paterson live election blog: Voters turn out for mayor, council races

The Record and Paterson Press

Check back for more updates throughout the day on Paterson's election. Polls are open until 8 p.m.

MICHAEL KARAS / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Paterson police officer Alfredo Guzman holds one end of a tape measure as a member of the Passaic County Prosecutor's Office, not shown, checks to make sure campaign signs are 100 feet away from a Second Ward polling site at Build Academy.

Torres tops field in absentee vote count

Jose "Joey" Torres has taken an early lead based on the 2,413 absentee ballots cast in the city's mayoral race.

Torres took 930 mail-in votes, followed by Maria Teresa Feliciano who had 402 and Rigo Rodriguez with 355, according to results released by the Passaic County clerk's office.

In the council race Alex Mendez picked up the most absentee votes, with 1,034. He was followed by Kenneth Morris with 728, Eddie Gonzalez with 717 and Kenneth McDaniel with 515.

Minjae park / staff

Hatim Ramadan outside the South Paterson Library.

— Joe Malinconico/Paterson Press

Warring factions face off in 4th Ward

Outside the Riverside Vets Community Center in the 4th Ward, warring factions of campaign volunteers lined both sides of Fifth Avenue -- Maria Teresa Feliciano and Joey Torres supporters on one side, a small band of Aslon Goow loyalists on the other.

It also was a hot campaigning spot for council candidates Alex Mendez and Eddie Gonzalez, whose volunteers shouted out to passing vehicles.

Milton Gonzalez, 34, a volunteer with Feliciano’s campaign, gave an extensive pitch on her behalf, saying she has what it takes to completely manage the city. He also took a swipe at Team Torres standing nearby.

“If you’re sick, raise your hands and thank God, instead of going into the pockets of the people you’re serving and take tax dollars,” he said, referring to Torres’ $74,000 severance payout.

Rigo Rodriguez, the City Council member running for mayor, also spent time at the polling site. He said he was poised to win the mayoral contest after getting a large support base to the polls, and prepared to begin tackling crime and potholes on day one. Though optimistic, he also spent time slamming the press and Feliciano’s camp for focusing on his recent indictment.

“Talk about the positive in Paterson,” he said, gesturing at the crowd. “I love this, it’s democracy.”

— Jeff Green

Homeless man looks for Election Day cash

The man wearing a Jeffery Jones campaign t-shirt seemed unexcited about the election. But still, he did his best to hand out Jones literature while standing outside the polling site at Eastside High School on Tuesday evening.

Tucked between his lips was a half-smoked cigarette he had found on the ground. His breath smelled of alcohol. The night before, he said he had slept in the vestibule of a downtown bank.

"Yeah, I'm homeless," he said. "I don't care who wins, but this is the only way I know I can get some money."

How much would he be paid? "I don't know," he said. "They didn't tell us. I'll find out tonight."

The man asked that his name not be published. He said he grew up in Paterson, went to school in the city, and held jobs until his life spiraled out of control.

Now he is 58. Sometimes, he said, the police let him sleep at headquarters. Other times, he said he takes shelter at banks' enclosed ATM areas. "I just need some help," he said.

-- Joe Malinconico/Paterson Press

Some voters think Paterson needs a woman in charge

Paterson has never elected a woman as its mayor. There was a brief period when Anna Lisa Dopirak served as interim mayor after Frank X. Graves died. But that's about it.

This year, there are two female candidates — Maria Teresa Feliciano and Donna Nelson-Ivy.

At School 13, one woman said gender was the deciding factor in her decision to vote for Feliciano.

"She's a woman and a Christian woman," said Fiordarsa Rivas. "I think she will make things better for the City of Paterson."

— Joe Malinconico/Paterson Press

Transvestite gets into the campaign spirit

For a short time on Tuesday evening, a 17-year-old transvestite jumped on the Rigo Rodriguez bandwagon. Standing outside Eastside High School, the transvestite wearing a belly-baring top hoisted a Rigo sign and called out to passing motorists on Park Avenue, telling them to vote for Rodriguez.

As it turns out, the transvestite said he doesn't really have any allegiance to the Rodriguez campaign. "It came out of boredom," he said. "I can always get attention. I'm loud."

In fact, his sister says she is backing Jose "Joey" Torres in the election.

— Joe Malinconico/Paterson Press

Voters at International High voting with conviction

Voter turnout at International High School has been light, but the people voting here appeared to do so with conviction.

Steve and Margaret McCurrie, die-hard Andre Sayegh supporters, said he would bring fresh ideas to City Hall if elected mayor. Some opponents have criticized his blessing by the head of the both the state and county Democratic parties and Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr., but the couple said those endorsements only solidified their choice.

One woman who asked not to be named said she believes Sayegh will win, but she cast her ballot anyway for Aslon Goow Sr., former City Council member. She went to high school with him and believes “he's the best man for the job.”

“He's an underdog but he's strong, he's diligent about getting Paterson back on its feet,” she said.

Across the street, a volunteer for Jose “Joey” Torres was equally enthused with his candidate. Though he was unaware of the former mayor's $74,000 severance check that has brought him heavy scrutiny, Angel Bernales-Bautista said Torres can unite the city.

Jose Cruz also was in the Torres camp. As he marched up Grand Street after casting his vote, he didn't bat an eye when asked who he supported. Cruz voted for Torres in the last election. Now, he said, “let's get him back.”

— Jeff Green

Key roads get pre-election paving

Mayor Jeffery Jones has taken a lot of political heat for the city’s failure to fix the potholes that have pockmarked many city streets. So it seems oddly coincidental that two major thoroughfares, Lafayette Street and Straight Street, got fresh pavement just days before the election.

Both streets run through the 4th Ward, heavily populated by African Americans, where a strong turnout is considered crucial for Jones’ re-election chances. But the mayor brushed aside the suggestion that new asphalt would smooth the road to Jones’ re-election.

“You may write that, but that’s not the case,” Jones said during a pause at his campaign headquarters at Park Avenue and Memorial Drive on Tuesday afternoon. “The truth is, those streets were scheduled to be repaved as part of schedule adopted by the City Council over a year ago.”

Jones’ administration has known plenty of stormy weather, first Tropical Storm Irene in 2011, then superstorm Sandy in 2012, and then last year’s harsh winter, which has left gaping holes in many streets. Jones, who has been campaigning with a brace on his left wrist after he slipped on the ice during the winter, literally feels the pain. He points to a $250,000 bond issue to fill the potholes adopted by the City Council two weeks ago as a sign of hope.

But Lafayette’s fresh new look didn’t appear to be winning Jones any votes on Tuesday afternoon. Four people encountered in mid-afternoon each said they were not voting.

“This mayor hasn’t done anything,” said Victoria Artis. “He didn’t prepare the city very well to deal with the winter. And there hasn’t been much help for people of low income, either. No jobs, no nothing.”

— Rich Cowen

Talk of change at 3rd Ward polling site

Four years ago, Jeffrey Jones owned the polls at the child care center at the corner of 20th Avenue and East 35th Street. He garnered about two-thirds of the almost 900 votes cast in the two 3rd Ward districts at the site.

But Jones might not do so well this time around based on random interviews with a dozen people — all African-Americans — who voted there on Tuesday afternoon.

For example, Samuel Coleman and Linda Hicks-Jarvis both said they voted for Jones four years ago, but not this time. Coleman declined to say who he was supporting this time, but Hicks-Jarvis said he voted for Andre Sayegh.

"If you want Paterson to prosper, you need to be part of the change," she said.

"I understand the struggles he faced, I understand the obstacles he faced, I think he had good intentions," Hicks-Jarvis said of Jones. "But I believe Andre Sayegh is the best choice for Paterson."

Hicks-Jarvis said she knows both Jones and Sayegh, and that her choice came down to those two men. "My family is part of the political structure," she said, adding that she is the daughter of William Hicks, Paterson's first black alderman.

First Ward resident Odell Lashley works at the child care center and was talking to voters all day long. He also backed Jones in 2010, but has switched to Sayegh. "It's time for a change, that's what everyone is saying," asserted Lashley. "He says he inherited the mess, but he made a lot of the mess himself. He fought a parking ticket for nine months. He could have been doing something better than that."

Not every Jones backer at the location was making a change. Adrian Gilbert, a resident of 34th Street, said he was frustrated with Paterson's problems, but willing to give Jones another chance at fixing them.

"It takes time to get there, I'm not going to be unreasonable about it," said Gilbert. "Jeff Jones is still the best guy as far as I can see."

"He could do a little better, he just needs to step up his game," said another Jones' backer, Jonathan Berdiel. "I'm voting for him again."

Teresa Holman said she hoped her fellow Patersonians would not base their votes on race. "Jeff got elected last time because of the color of his skin," said Holman, herself an African-American. But he did such a bad job, people need to do some thinking." Holman said she voted for Sayegh four years ago and would do so again.

— Joe Malinconico/Paterson Press

Torres campaign works neighborhood near JFK High

School’s out and voters are steadily trickling into John F. Kennedy High to cast their ballots.

Several people who voted here for Mayor Jones four years ago said they wouldn’t support him again.

Mohammed Hussain, 50, said Andre Sayegh earned his vote by being “a very good person and honest.” Like many others, he faulted Jones for a botched snow cleanup this winter.

One man who asked not to be named said his decision came down to the more personable candidate. Jones, he said, snubbed him at a few public appearances, while Jose “Joey” Torres recently ran up to him for a hug.

The Torres campaign certainly had a presence. A caravan of five vehicles covered in campaign posters for the former mayor moved up and down the streets of the neighborhood.

After consulting his wife on the phone, Dave Edwards, 62, a resident for 36 years, also said he was a Torres voter. “I’m just looking for a change,” he said.

— Jeff Green

Sayegh foe campaigns for Torres

Andre Sayegh’s public campaign to shut down the hookah bars that become a nuisance in residential areas may win him a lot of votes in his home 6th Ward. But it cost him, too.

One of the 6th Ward residents who wasn’t voting for Sayegh was Raid Hammad, who says he’s a partner in the Dubai Lounge, a Montclair Avenue hookah bar that the city has tried to shut down because of noise complaints and unlicensed consumption of alcohol. Tuesday’s election provided Hammad with an opportunity for political payback.

Around 1 p.m., he stood on Main Street across the street from the polling place at the South Paterson Community Center and hoisted a Joey Torres campaign sign over his head.

“Vote for Torres, line 3A!” he shouted to cars as they rolled by. Some drivers honked; most ignored him and drove by.

In Ward 2, by the city's Hillcrest section, support for former Councilman Aslon Goow Sr. appeared strong.

"Very popular here," said Shuzun Ahmed, a Bangladesh native who was voting outside School 19 with his friend, Ali Kahn. "He's a strong leader for the community. He's the man against the crime. He's the man to clean the city."

One of the dozens of pro-Goow lawn signs along James Street said, "Get Tough on Crime!"

Juan Valencia, a mortgage broker who leans Republican, said he supported Maria Teresa Feliciano, almost by process of elimination. He held Torres' $74,000 payout from when he was mayor against him. He cited Rigo Rodriguez's investigation. As for the incumbent: "Mayor Jones has done nothing for the city."

He said taxes are too high, while services are lacking.

"Lack of police force, lack of cleaning, lack of shoveling," he said.

— Minjae Park

Sayegh lingers at School 25 after voting

No one denies that Andre Sayegh likes to press the flesh. His supporters say it reflects the council president's eagerness to meet the Patersonians he wants to serve. His detractors call it superficial political glad-handing.

But Jose "Joey" Torres' campaign manager, Omar Rodriguez, says Sayegh went too far on Election Day morning at School 25.

Accompanied by his wife and infant daughter, candidate Sayegh drove to the Trenton Avenue school to cast his vote at about 10 a.m.

Rodriguez says Sayegh then stuck around at the school and its parking lot for about 25 minutes shaking hands. But the parking lot and school are inside the polling place buffer zone where Election Day campaigning is forbidden.

"We had to get someone to chase him away," said Rodriguez. But Sayegh's campaign manager, Lizbeth Davies, said he spent less than 15 minutes at the polling site. Davies said she wasn't aware of anyone chasing the candidate off school grounds.

— Joe Malinconico/Paterson Press

Torres' brother re-installs campaign sign in 2nd Ward

Dora Fuentes didn't know what to expect when someone rang the doorbell of her Richmond Avenue home on Tuesday morning.

At the door was a stranger, she said, telling her she had to take down the sign on her front lawn backing Jose "Joey" Torres for mayor.

Fuentes lives across the street from the entrance to School 27, one of the polling sites in the city's 2nd Ward. The stranger told Fuentes the sign was too close to the polling site.

So down came the sign. Until Torres' brother, Freddie, went to School 27 to cast his vote. He noticed there was no longer a sign outside Fuentes' home. "This lady puts up a sign for us religiously, whenever Joey runs," said the candidate's brother.

Freddie Torres checked with Fuentes and then put the sign back up. "It's private property," he asserted. "They can't tell her to take the sign down."

— Joe Malinconico/Paterson Press

Jones sees 'good sign' in Monday visit from Indian investors

Standing in the warmth of the late morning sunshine, Mayor Jeffery Jones seemed at ease for a man facing the challenge of seven rivals seeking to unseat him in today's election. Inside his Memorial Drive campaign headquarters, staff members worked the phones and stacked signs.

"If you ain't done the work by now, it's too late," said Jones.

A city fire truck honked its horn as it drove by and Jones waved back at it. It was 11 a.m. and the two men Jones had defeated in the 2010 election — former mayor Jose "Joey" Torres and City Council President Andre Sayegh — already had cast their vote. Jones said he would probably vote in a couple hours.

But Jones wanted to talk about something other than the election. On Monday, he said, a group of businessmen with connections in India came to City Hall to talk about investment opportunities in Paterson.

Jones had taken criticism for his 2013 economic development trip to India and his ongoing meetings with various potential investors from China. Critics have questioned whether Jones' attempts to attract foreign investors to the Silk City were practical. But Jones has characterized his efforts as ground-breaking. He has said that no one else has looked overseas to try to boost the city's economy. The most recent group of visitors called on Friday and asked for meeting on Monday.

"To me, that was a good sign," said the mayor.

— Joe Malinconico/Paterson Press

Campaign workers compete for votes

Outside the Christopher Hope Community Center, volunteers for the mayoral campaigns of Jose 'Joey' Torres and Jeffrey Jones competed for the attention of passersby.

Across the street, Channell Dumas and Tyquan Moore headed to vote. They both said they were leaning toward Andre Sayegh.

"I would say the potholes," Dumas said, when asked what issues she's considering.

"It's terrible," Moore said.

Durham called their attention. "Who you voting for today, Jeff Jones or Torres?" she asked.

"Neither," Dumas said.

"OK," Durham said.

Bryson Brown, a North Third Street resident, said he voted for Torres.

"I like the way from when he was mayor, how he cared more," he said.

Brown said Torres was quicker to fix potholes than Jones. "People can mess up their cars," he said.

Another voter, Willie Owens, wouldn't say who he voted for, but said, "We need someone that's going to lower the tax and fix these potholes."

— Minjae Park

Prominent Dominican working on Torres' campaign

Last year, when a group of Dominican-American community leaders conducted a vetting process to put their support behind one candidate in the mayoral election, one of the organizers was former school board member Pedro Rodriguez.

At the time, Rodriguez said it was important for the Dominican community not to split its vote between multiple Dominican candidates. The group backed Maria Teresa Feliciano over two other contenders, Rigo Rodriguez and Miguel Diaz.

But Pedro Rodriguez, who narrowly lost the 2012 election for the 1st Ward city council seat, is no longer supporting Feliciano.

On Tuesday morning, Pedro Rodriguez was busy at Jose "Joey" Torres' Market Street campaign headquarters. Meanwhile, Diaz has thrown his support to Andre Sayegh in the mayoral election.

As a result, the city's large bloc of Dominican voters seems likely to be divided among multiple candidates today.

— Joe Malinconico/Paterson Press

Wimberly weighs in on council race

Assemblyman Benjie Wimberly's popularity made his endorsement a coveted prize for candidates running in the city's elections. Two weeks ago, Wimberly announced he would be backing Andre Sayegh in the mayoral race. But he stayed quiet about the eight-person contest for three at-large city council seats.

Until Tuesday morning. About half an hour after the polls opened at 6 am, Wimberly sent an email to his backers that he was supporting incumbent Kenneth McDaniel along with Michael Jackson and Maritza Davila. Among the five contenders who failed to get Wimberly's blessing was long-term incumbent Kenneth Morris.

— Joe Malinconico/Paterson Press

Snow cleanup on voters' minds

Outside South Paterson Library Community Center, Andre Sayegh signs hung prominently, but some voters said they wouldn't elevate him to mayor.

Hatim Ramadan, a Palestine native and 30-year Paterson resident, said he voted for Goow.

"When you call, he shows up," he said, calling Goow a "nice person."

He complained about the snow removal during the past winter. "You know how much we suffer in the snow?"

Aida Roja, originally from Puerto Rico, said she was torn between the four candidates she knows personally: Sayegh, Goow, Torres and Feliciano.

She didn't want her vote to be revealed in the newspaper, but she said she voted for the candidate who had the best chance of "bringing the city back to where it used to be." She pointed to crime and education as key issues. And, like Ramada, she had an unhappy winter.

"The city was a disaster during the snowstorm," she said.

Meanwhile, Fabiola Bertoli, a volunteer for the non-profit Working Families, gathered signatures outside the polling station — outside the 100-foot perimeter — for a complaint to pass paid sick days in the city. "We're collecting signatures for workers to get paid sick days," she told voters as they walked out.

"You have to be a registered voter," she said of why she was there on Tuesday.

— Minjae Park

Safety an issue for seniors

At the Governor Paterson Towers, Bernice Sermond sat on a bench, directing voters to the polling site. She hadn't voted by 11 a.m., but she said she had all day.

She would support Mayor Jeffery Jones' re-election. "He's good with the seniors," she said.

Elizabeth Novoa said in Spanish that she wanted someone who could "clean the streets," referring to crime and potholes.

Bill Priestly, a longtime resident who heads the safety committee for the towers, said he was supporting Sayegh because he's improved safety in the area.

The number of mail-in votes cast in today’s election will be greater than the totals from the last three Paterson mayoral races combined.

As of 9:30 am on Election Day, the Passaic County Clerk’s Office already reported receiving 2,263 mail-in votes for the Paterson election, with another 1,092 absentee ballots issued and not yet returned. Voters or their representatives have until 8 pm on Election Night, when the polls close, to return the outstanding mail-in ballots.

In comparison, there were 971 absentee votes cast in the 2010 mayoral races, 387 in 2006 and 255 in 2002, according to election records. In each of those races, Jose “Joey” Torres received the largest number of mail-in votes, including 743 in his unsuccessful re-election bid in 2010.

In November 2012, absentee ballots provided Mohammed Akhtaruzzaman his margin of victory in the special election for the city’s 2nd Ward City Council seat. In 2010, absentee ballots gave Rigo Rodriguez the votes he needed to win his seat in the At-Large council race. But Rodriguez now is under indictment for election fraud as a result of the state Attorney General’s Office probe of his campaign’s handling of mail-in ballots in that race.

So far, the 2nd Ward has largest number of absentee ballots submitted with 854, according to a report provided by the county clerk’s office. Three of the eight candidates in the mayoral race live in the 2nd Ward – Torres, former councilman Aslon Goow Sr. and Maria Teresa Feliciano.

There have been 623 mail-in votes submitted for the 1st Ward, 462 for the 3rd Ward, 471 for the 4th Ward, 525 for the 5th Ward, and 420 for the 6th Ward.

Paterson live election blog: Voters turn out for mayor, council races

Paterson police officer Alfredo Guzman holds one end of a tape measure as a member of the Passaic County Prosecutor's Office, not shown, checks to make sure campaign signs are 100 feet away from a Second Ward polling site at Build Academy.

Outside the Riverside Vets Community Center in the 4th Ward, warring factions of campaign volunteers lined both sides of Fifth Avenue -- Maria Teresa Feliciano and Joey Torres supporters on one side, a small band of Aslon Goow loyalists on the other.

It also was a hot campaigning spot for council candidates Alex Mendez and Eddie Gonzalez, whose volunteers shouted out to passing vehicles.

Milton Gonzalez, 34, a volunteer with Feliciano’s campaign, gave an extensive pitch on her behalf, saying she has what it takes to completely manage the city. He also took a swipe at Team Torres standing nearby.

“If you’re sick, raise your hands and thank God, instead of going into the pockets of the people you’re serving and take tax dollars,” he said, referring to Torres’ $74,000 severance payout.

Rigo Rodriguez, the City Council member running for mayor, also spent time at the polling site. He said he was poised to win the mayoral contest after getting a large support base to the polls, and prepared to begin tackling crime and potholes on day one. Though optimistic, he also spent time slamming the press and Feliciano’s camp for focusing on his recent indictment.

“Talk about the positive in Paterson,” he said, gesturing at the crowd. “I love this, it’s democracy.”

— Jeff Green

Homeless man looks for Election Day cash

The man wearing a Jeffery Jones campaign t-shirt seemed unexcited about the election. But still, he did his best to hand out Jones literature while standing outside the polling site at Eastside High School on Tuesday evening.

Tucked between his lips was a half-smoked cigarette he had found on the ground. His breath smelled of alcohol. The night before, he said he had slept in the vestibule of a downtown bank.

"Yeah, I'm homeless," he said. "I don't care who wins, but this is the only way I know I can get some money."

How much would he be paid? "I don't know," he said. "They didn't tell us. I'll find out tonight."

The man asked that his name not be published. He said he grew up in Paterson, went to school in the city, and held jobs until his life spiraled out of control.

Now he is 58. Sometimes, he said, the police let him sleep at headquarters. Other times, he said he takes shelter at banks' enclosed ATM areas. "I just need some help," he said.

-- Joe Malinconico/Paterson Press

Some voters think Paterson needs a woman in charge

Paterson has never elected a woman as its mayor. There was a brief period when Anna Lisa Dopirak served as interim mayor after Frank X. Graves died. But that's about it.

This year, there are two female candidates — Maria Teresa Feliciano and Donna Nelson-Ivy.

At School 13, one woman said gender was the deciding factor in her decision to vote for Feliciano.

"She's a woman and a Christian woman," said Fiordarsa Rivas. "I think she will make things better for the City of Paterson."

— Joe Malinconico/Paterson Press

Transvestite gets into the campaign spirit

For a short time on Tuesday evening, a 17-year-old transvestite jumped on the Rigo Rodriguez bandwagon. Standing outside Eastside High School, the transvestite wearing a belly-baring top hoisted a Rigo sign and called out to passing motorists on Park Avenue, telling them to vote for Rodriguez.

As it turns out, the transvestite said he doesn't really have any allegiance to the Rodriguez campaign. "It came out of boredom," he said. "I can always get attention. I'm loud."

In fact, his sister says she is backing Jose "Joey" Torres in the election.

— Joe Malinconico/Paterson Press

Voters at International High voting with conviction

Voter turnout at International High School has been light, but the people voting here appeared to do so with conviction.

Steve and Margaret McCurrie, die-hard Andre Sayegh supporters, said he would bring fresh ideas to City Hall if elected mayor. Some opponents have criticized his blessing by the head of the both the state and county Democratic parties and Rep. Bill Pascrell Jr., but the couple said those endorsements only solidified their choice.

One woman who asked not to be named said she believes Sayegh will win, but she cast her ballot anyway for Aslon Goow Sr., former City Council member. She went to high school with him and believes “he's the best man for the job.”

“He's an underdog but he's strong, he's diligent about getting Paterson back on its feet,” she said.

Across the street, a volunteer for Jose “Joey” Torres was equally enthused with his candidate. Though he was unaware of the former mayor's $74,000 severance check that has brought him heavy scrutiny, Angel Bernales-Bautista said Torres can unite the city.

Jose Cruz also was in the Torres camp. As he marched up Grand Street after casting his vote, he didn't bat an eye when asked who he supported. Cruz voted for Torres in the last election. Now, he said, “let's get him back.”

— Jeff Green

Key roads get pre-election paving

Mayor Jeffery Jones has taken a lot of political heat for the city’s failure to fix the potholes that have pockmarked many city streets. So it seems oddly coincidental that two major thoroughfares, Lafayette Street and Straight Street, got fresh pavement just days before the election.

Both streets run through the 4th Ward, heavily populated by African Americans, where a strong turnout is considered crucial for Jones’ re-election chances. But the mayor brushed aside the suggestion that new asphalt would smooth the road to Jones’ re-election.

“You may write that, but that’s not the case,” Jones said during a pause at his campaign headquarters at Park Avenue and Memorial Drive on Tuesday afternoon. “The truth is, those streets were scheduled to be repaved as part of schedule adopted by the City Council over a year ago.”

Jones’ administration has known plenty of stormy weather, first Tropical Storm Irene in 2011, then superstorm Sandy in 2012, and then last year’s harsh winter, which has left gaping holes in many streets. Jones, who has been campaigning with a brace on his left wrist after he slipped on the ice during the winter, literally feels the pain. He points to a $250,000 bond issue to fill the potholes adopted by the City Council two weeks ago as a sign of hope.

But Lafayette’s fresh new look didn’t appear to be winning Jones any votes on Tuesday afternoon. Four people encountered in mid-afternoon each said they were not voting.

“This mayor hasn’t done anything,” said Victoria Artis. “He didn’t prepare the city very well to deal with the winter. And there hasn’t been much help for people of low income, either. No jobs, no nothing.”

— Rich Cowen

Talk of change at 3rd Ward polling site

Four years ago, Jeffrey Jones owned the polls at the child care center at the corner of 20th Avenue and East 35th Street. He garnered about two-thirds of the almost 900 votes cast in the two 3rd Ward districts at the site.

But Jones might not do so well this time around based on random interviews with a dozen people — all African-Americans — who voted there on Tuesday afternoon.

For example, Samuel Coleman and Linda Hicks-Jarvis both said they voted for Jones four years ago, but not this time. Coleman declined to say who he was supporting this time, but Hicks-Jarvis said he voted for Andre Sayegh.

"If you want Paterson to prosper, you need to be part of the change," she said.

"I understand the struggles he faced, I understand the obstacles he faced, I think he had good intentions," Hicks-Jarvis said of Jones. "But I believe Andre Sayegh is the best choice for Paterson."

Hicks-Jarvis said she knows both Jones and Sayegh, and that her choice came down to those two men. "My family is part of the political structure," she said, adding that she is the daughter of William Hicks, Paterson's first black alderman.

First Ward resident Odell Lashley works at the child care center and was talking to voters all day long. He also backed Jones in 2010, but has switched to Sayegh. "It's time for a change, that's what everyone is saying," asserted Lashley. "He says he inherited the mess, but he made a lot of the mess himself. He fought a parking ticket for nine months. He could have been doing something better than that."

Not every Jones backer at the location was making a change. Adrian Gilbert, a resident of 34th Street, said he was frustrated with Paterson's problems, but willing to give Jones another chance at fixing them.

"It takes time to get there, I'm not going to be unreasonable about it," said Gilbert. "Jeff Jones is still the best guy as far as I can see."

"He could do a little better, he just needs to step up his game," said another Jones' backer, Jonathan Berdiel. "I'm voting for him again."

Teresa Holman said she hoped her fellow Patersonians would not base their votes on race. "Jeff got elected last time because of the color of his skin," said Holman, herself an African-American. But he did such a bad job, people need to do some thinking." Holman said she voted for Sayegh four years ago and would do so again.

— Joe Malinconico/Paterson Press

Torres campaign works neighborhood near JFK High

School’s out and voters are steadily trickling into John F. Kennedy High to cast their ballots.

Several people who voted here for Mayor Jones four years ago said they wouldn’t support him again.

Mohammed Hussain, 50, said Andre Sayegh earned his vote by being “a very good person and honest.” Like many others, he faulted Jones for a botched snow cleanup this winter.

One man who asked not to be named said his decision came down to the more personable candidate. Jones, he said, snubbed him at a few public appearances, while Jose “Joey” Torres recently ran up to him for a hug.

The Torres campaign certainly had a presence. A caravan of five vehicles covered in campaign posters for the former mayor moved up and down the streets of the neighborhood.

After consulting his wife on the phone, Dave Edwards, 62, a resident for 36 years, also said he was a Torres voter. “I’m just looking for a change,” he said.

— Jeff Green

Sayegh foe campaigns for Torres

Andre Sayegh’s public campaign to shut down the hookah bars that become a nuisance in residential areas may win him a lot of votes in his home 6th Ward. But it cost him, too.

One of the 6th Ward residents who wasn’t voting for Sayegh was Raid Hammad, who says he’s a partner in the Dubai Lounge, a Montclair Avenue hookah bar that the city has tried to shut down because of noise complaints and unlicensed consumption of alcohol. Tuesday’s election provided Hammad with an opportunity for political payback.

Around 1 p.m., he stood on Main Street across the street from the polling place at the South Paterson Community Center and hoisted a Joey Torres campaign sign over his head.

“Vote for Torres, line 3A!” he shouted to cars as they rolled by. Some drivers honked; most ignored him and drove by.

In Ward 2, by the city's Hillcrest section, support for former Councilman Aslon Goow Sr. appeared strong.

"Very popular here," said Shuzun Ahmed, a Bangladesh native who was voting outside School 19 with his friend, Ali Kahn. "He's a strong leader for the community. He's the man against the crime. He's the man to clean the city."

One of the dozens of pro-Goow lawn signs along James Street said, "Get Tough on Crime!"

Juan Valencia, a mortgage broker who leans Republican, said he supported Maria Teresa Feliciano, almost by process of elimination. He held Torres' $74,000 payout from when he was mayor against him. He cited Rigo Rodriguez's investigation. As for the incumbent: "Mayor Jones has done nothing for the city."

He said taxes are too high, while services are lacking.

"Lack of police force, lack of cleaning, lack of shoveling," he said.

— Minjae Park

Sayegh lingers at School 25 after voting

No one denies that Andre Sayegh likes to press the flesh. His supporters say it reflects the council president's eagerness to meet the Patersonians he wants to serve. His detractors call it superficial political glad-handing.

But Jose "Joey" Torres' campaign manager, Omar Rodriguez, says Sayegh went too far on Election Day morning at School 25.

Accompanied by his wife and infant daughter, candidate Sayegh drove to the Trenton Avenue school to cast his vote at about 10 a.m.

Rodriguez says Sayegh then stuck around at the school and its parking lot for about 25 minutes shaking hands. But the parking lot and school are inside the polling place buffer zone where Election Day campaigning is forbidden.

"We had to get someone to chase him away," said Rodriguez. But Sayegh's campaign manager, Lizbeth Davies, said he spent less than 15 minutes at the polling site. Davies said she wasn't aware of anyone chasing the candidate off school grounds.

— Joe Malinconico/Paterson Press

Torres' brother re-installs campaign sign in 2nd Ward

Dora Fuentes didn't know what to expect when someone rang the doorbell of her Richmond Avenue home on Tuesday morning.

At the door was a stranger, she said, telling her she had to take down the sign on her front lawn backing Jose "Joey" Torres for mayor.

Fuentes lives across the street from the entrance to School 27, one of the polling sites in the city's 2nd Ward. The stranger told Fuentes the sign was too close to the polling site.

So down came the sign. Until Torres' brother, Freddie, went to School 27 to cast his vote. He noticed there was no longer a sign outside Fuentes' home. "This lady puts up a sign for us religiously, whenever Joey runs," said the candidate's brother.

Freddie Torres checked with Fuentes and then put the sign back up. "It's private property," he asserted. "They can't tell her to take the sign down."

— Joe Malinconico/Paterson Press

Jones sees 'good sign' in Monday visit from Indian investors

Standing in the warmth of the late morning sunshine, Mayor Jeffery Jones seemed at ease for a man facing the challenge of seven rivals seeking to unseat him in today's election. Inside his Memorial Drive campaign headquarters, staff members worked the phones and stacked signs.

"If you ain't done the work by now, it's too late," said Jones.

A city fire truck honked its horn as it drove by and Jones waved back at it. It was 11 a.m. and the two men Jones had defeated in the 2010 election — former mayor Jose "Joey" Torres and City Council President Andre Sayegh — already had cast their vote. Jones said he would probably vote in a couple hours.

But Jones wanted to talk about something other than the election. On Monday, he said, a group of businessmen with connections in India came to City Hall to talk about investment opportunities in Paterson.

Jones had taken criticism for his 2013 economic development trip to India and his ongoing meetings with various potential investors from China. Critics have questioned whether Jones' attempts to attract foreign investors to the Silk City were practical. But Jones has characterized his efforts as ground-breaking. He has said that no one else has looked overseas to try to boost the city's economy. The most recent group of visitors called on Friday and asked for meeting on Monday.

"To me, that was a good sign," said the mayor.

— Joe Malinconico/Paterson Press

Campaign workers compete for votes

Outside the Christopher Hope Community Center, volunteers for the mayoral campaigns of Jose 'Joey' Torres and Jeffrey Jones competed for the attention of passersby.

Across the street, Channell Dumas and Tyquan Moore headed to vote. They both said they were leaning toward Andre Sayegh.

"I would say the potholes," Dumas said, when asked what issues she's considering.

"It's terrible," Moore said.

Durham called their attention. "Who you voting for today, Jeff Jones or Torres?" she asked.

"Neither," Dumas said.

"OK," Durham said.

Bryson Brown, a North Third Street resident, said he voted for Torres.

"I like the way from when he was mayor, how he cared more," he said.

Brown said Torres was quicker to fix potholes than Jones. "People can mess up their cars," he said.

Another voter, Willie Owens, wouldn't say who he voted for, but said, "We need someone that's going to lower the tax and fix these potholes."

— Minjae Park

Prominent Dominican working on Torres' campaign

Last year, when a group of Dominican-American community leaders conducted a vetting process to put their support behind one candidate in the mayoral election, one of the organizers was former school board member Pedro Rodriguez.

At the time, Rodriguez said it was important for the Dominican community not to split its vote between multiple Dominican candidates. The group backed Maria Teresa Feliciano over two other contenders, Rigo Rodriguez and Miguel Diaz.

But Pedro Rodriguez, who narrowly lost the 2012 election for the 1st Ward city council seat, is no longer supporting Feliciano.

On Tuesday morning, Pedro Rodriguez was busy at Jose "Joey" Torres' Market Street campaign headquarters. Meanwhile, Diaz has thrown his support to Andre Sayegh in the mayoral election.

As a result, the city's large bloc of Dominican voters seems likely to be divided among multiple candidates today.

— Joe Malinconico/Paterson Press

Wimberly weighs in on council race

Assemblyman Benjie Wimberly's popularity made his endorsement a coveted prize for candidates running in the city's elections. Two weeks ago, Wimberly announced he would be backing Andre Sayegh in the mayoral race. But he stayed quiet about the eight-person contest for three at-large city council seats.

Until Tuesday morning. About half an hour after the polls opened at 6 am, Wimberly sent an email to his backers that he was supporting incumbent Kenneth McDaniel along with Michael Jackson and Maritza Davila. Among the five contenders who failed to get Wimberly's blessing was long-term incumbent Kenneth Morris.

— Joe Malinconico/Paterson Press

Snow cleanup on voters' minds

Outside South Paterson Library Community Center, Andre Sayegh signs hung prominently, but some voters said they wouldn't elevate him to mayor.

Hatim Ramadan, a Palestine native and 30-year Paterson resident, said he voted for Goow.

"When you call, he shows up," he said, calling Goow a "nice person."

He complained about the snow removal during the past winter. "You know how much we suffer in the snow?"

Aida Roja, originally from Puerto Rico, said she was torn between the four candidates she knows personally: Sayegh, Goow, Torres and Feliciano.

She didn't want her vote to be revealed in the newspaper, but she said she voted for the candidate who had the best chance of "bringing the city back to where it used to be." She pointed to crime and education as key issues. And, like Ramada, she had an unhappy winter.

"The city was a disaster during the snowstorm," she said.

Meanwhile, Fabiola Bertoli, a volunteer for the non-profit Working Families, gathered signatures outside the polling station — outside the 100-foot perimeter — for a complaint to pass paid sick days in the city. "We're collecting signatures for workers to get paid sick days," she told voters as they walked out.

"You have to be a registered voter," she said of why she was there on Tuesday.

— Minjae Park

Safety an issue for seniors

At the Governor Paterson Towers, Bernice Sermond sat on a bench, directing voters to the polling site. She hadn't voted by 11 a.m., but she said she had all day.

She would support Mayor Jeffery Jones' re-election. "He's good with the seniors," she said.

Elizabeth Novoa said in Spanish that she wanted someone who could "clean the streets," referring to crime and potholes.

Bill Priestly, a longtime resident who heads the safety committee for the towers, said he was supporting Sayegh because he's improved safety in the area.

The number of mail-in votes cast in today’s election will be greater than the totals from the last three Paterson mayoral races combined.

As of 9:30 am on Election Day, the Passaic County Clerk’s Office already reported receiving 2,263 mail-in votes for the Paterson election, with another 1,092 absentee ballots issued and not yet returned. Voters or their representatives have until 8 pm on Election Night, when the polls close, to return the outstanding mail-in ballots.

In comparison, there were 971 absentee votes cast in the 2010 mayoral races, 387 in 2006 and 255 in 2002, according to election records. In each of those races, Jose “Joey” Torres received the largest number of mail-in votes, including 743 in his unsuccessful re-election bid in 2010.

In November 2012, absentee ballots provided Mohammed Akhtaruzzaman his margin of victory in the special election for the city’s 2nd Ward City Council seat. In 2010, absentee ballots gave Rigo Rodriguez the votes he needed to win his seat in the At-Large council race. But Rodriguez now is under indictment for election fraud as a result of the state Attorney General’s Office probe of his campaign’s handling of mail-in ballots in that race.

So far, the 2nd Ward has largest number of absentee ballots submitted with 854, according to a report provided by the county clerk’s office. Three of the eight candidates in the mayoral race live in the 2nd Ward – Torres, former councilman Aslon Goow Sr. and Maria Teresa Feliciano.

There have been 623 mail-in votes submitted for the 1st Ward, 462 for the 3rd Ward, 471 for the 4th Ward, 525 for the 5th Ward, and 420 for the 6th Ward.